PROBLEM: one side Lower

peddy

Veteran
 London
Hi guys,

on the rear one side is lower than the other.... is this the springs? how much money am i looking at here?

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It is really low. Your Z4 has standard suspension? Do you have a picture of the other side?
 
Looks like a broken spring to me...
Can you jack it up or park it half up a curb to take a look..?
 
I had a similar problem earlier in the year after changing my broken BMW rear springs for Eibach Pro springs, I then noticed that I had worn the inner edge of one my tyres away after about 1000 miles, had a full geo set up done and that has seemed to level the car out, the photos you have posted seem to show the tyre has been rubbing, I'm now running 19's without any rubbing issues.

A few people have posted this problem in the past so it seems to be fairly common.

As has been said check your springs if they are Ok, get a full geo check done.
 
ksher said:
It is really low. Your Z4 has standard suspension?
Just guessing but if they are the std ///M tyres then the profiles are 5% larger than standard which will fill the arches more.
 
ok when i took these pics it was parked in my drive which is downhill a bit and looking at both rears the driver's side there was no space to put anything through though the other side all most 2 fingers could fit (which i believe is correct iirc). after posting this i then checked it again on a level road and both sides were the same.

i got the full realignment done when i got the M wheels which was about a couple of months a go, so it can't be that.

i guess this is a faulty spring right?? if so, should i:

a. replace just the faulty spring
b. replace both rear srings
c. replace all four springs
 
Personally i would'nt change just 1 spring,

OEM BMW rear springs are about £75 each and come with a 2 year warranty, take about 1 hour to fit and can be done quite easily on a driveway without any specialist tools.

I fitted an Eibach Pro spring which cost about £150 for all 4 springs with a 5 year warranty, the rears are again really easy but the fronts are a PITA without the proper tools, the claw type of spring compressors generally available are no good as they do not compress the spring enough.

I still think it looks like one of your tyres has been rubbing so I would be tempted to go OEM rather than risk lowering the car another 15mm and having a serious problem.
 
You should be able to see the broken spring through the alloy wheel, this is how i spotted mine, it wasnt sitting right at the top. Removing the wheel confirmed this. It only tends to be the rears that are the problem. BMW only replace both if the car has done more then 30k miles.
 
While I would always look to replace both as a matter of personal choice, BMW confirmed to me that there is only a need to replace a damaged spring not the pair as there is no settling in, bedding, etc.

While I'm not against aftermarket srpings and indeed went through and excercise of looking at them be aware that all aftermarket cause a 15mm drop compared to ///M suspension (which as a 3.0i you have) and 30mm vs standard. You need to judge if you can handle a drop of that size as Richard G points out. For this reason I remained OEM when I did my rears a month ago.

It also goes without much need to say that a spring change to aftermarket commits you to a full 4 spring change and geo to correct the drop.
 
well mine have covered 40k, but not sure if the springs have been replaced before i bought it (i'll take a look at the docs i got from the previous owner).

though i'm not happy about paying so much to BMW for springs. i'm definetly not lowering the car further. Does anyone know who makes BMW springs? Can i get OEM springs from somewhere like eurocarparts?

EDIT: checked eurocarparts and they're £62.71 (though i'm not sure if it's OEM, but there's not much difference in price. they also suggest on their site to "always replace in pairs across the same axle".

So how do you replace rear springs? I couldn't find anything in the How To.

EDIT 2: should I be replacing any other parts??
 
Hi, I've come to realise my rear tyres are 255/40R18. And iirc it should be 255/35R18, so I think you're right Wondermike. The previous owner who I got them off had the 2.0 iirc, so they wouldn't of had this issue as they have the standard suspension.
 
Mine had one spring that was too long - so BMW replaced it and all was normal.

We all thought the other was snapped, but checked and nothing!!
 
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